Tour Details
- Duration
- 2.5 hours
- Product Type
- Tour
- Venues
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- East Side Gallery
- TV Tower
Photos & Highlights
- Private interactive walk tailored for families and children
- Led by a local scholar
Tour Description
Once upon a time, not very long ago, Berlin was not one city, but two. This 2.5-hour walk, part of our family program, gives children of all ages insight into what life was like during the days when the Berlin Wall separated the city. The combination of legendary sights, engaging activities, and astonishing stories will captivate families—whether return visitors or Berlin first-timers.
(If you're looking for a tour tailored for adults, please see our Berlin Wall tour.)
War’s End
In the aftermath of World War II, Germany’s future was deeply uncertain. An enormous wall surrounded the western part of the city, which, at the time, was divided up between the American, British and French, who had helped to liberate Berlin at the end of World War II. The eastern side was controlled by the USSR, whose forces had been instrumental in defeating the Nazis.
Take a sneak peek of what this tour has to offer with a slideshow of highlights from the East Side Gallery.
A New Normal
The concrete divider tore the city apart like never before. Children were separated from their parents, and people were no longer able to get to work. With the Wall in place, the differences between East and West became more pronounced. Traces of this can be seen all over the city today, from architecture to traffic signals, streetlights to street art. So what was it like to live in a city cut in half? How did life differ in the East and the West? Our expert guide will be on hand to spark children’s imaginations with activities and discussions about growing up in Berlin during that singular era.
Vivid History
We’ll start at the East Side Gallery, a colorfully decorated part of the original Berlin Wall—the longest remaining stretch—and act out what it might have been like as a family separated by the Wall. We’ll examine the pictures and talk about what they mean, and imagine what we might draw ourselves. Then we’ll jump on the S-Bahn train to Alexanderplatz, where we'll shoot to the top of the iconic TV Tower with skip-the-line tickets to take in panoramic views of the city. From 200 meters up, there are still plenty of visible signs of a city with two very different stories to tell.
FAQs
Is this tour suitable for people with mobility issues?
Unfortunately, the TV Tower is not accessible for people with mobility issues. This is because of the structure of the building and the lack of safe means of exit in the case of evacuation. Please reach out to us for more information or to discuss alternative tours that are accessible.
Unfortunately, the TV Tower is not accessible for people with mobility issues. This is because of the structure of the building and the lack of safe means of exit in the case of evacuation. Please reach out to us for more information or to discuss alternative tours that are accessible.
Where You'll Start
18 Reviews
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Reviews can only be left by Context customers after they have completed a tour. For more information about our reviews, please see our FAQ.
The tour was poorly designed and poorly executed. It focused far too much on graffiti on a small section of the wall and not enough on the broader picture, the division of the city and the context (literally) of what was happening. It excluded major sights such as Checkpoint Charlie and its museum - a far better place for kids to understand what divided Berlin was like.
Our guide, while a very nice person, is completely inappropriate as a guide for this tour. How can you have someone who has only lived in Berlin for 8 years do this tour when so many Germans who lived through the experience are still available? They simply didn’t know enough.
It seems that Context has grown too fast and can not maintain the high quality standards it established in the past. Better to not accept the booking than to disappoint so much. We’ve taken many of your tours and recommended Context to over a dozen friends. Based on our two tours of Berlin, not sure about doing that in the future.
Danna
Jun. 20, 2019
Excellent tour! We loved Roberta’s easy, friendly manner with children. According to my kids, she made the information fun, not boring.
Robin
Jun. 19, 2019
Everything was great and the right amount of content and pace for kids. Aaron was knowledgeable and engaging.
William
Apr. 22, 2019
